A Dance Of Wind And Fire
by Acetate.A
Summary: Naruto is one of Itachi's best assassins. So when Fugaku orders Itachi to teach prince Sasuke the skills of combat, Itachi places the burden on Naruto's shoulders. Let's just say both aren't too pleased with the prospect...at first.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Do not own Naruto, wish I did, but I don't.

**Warnings:** Swearing, lemons, limes, Sasuke acting like a brat. You've been warned.

**A/N:**Another story I should really not be starting but it's been plaguing my brain all day and just had to be typed up.

The main pairing will be SasukexNaruto but other peoplexNaruto may pop up now and again. He's not a man whore, just pathetically naive.

Also I should probably add that this has only been edited once so I fear the horror of my grammar in here.

* * *

><p>Target confirmed.<p>

A man, in his late thirties with curly brown hair and hazel eyes. Has a wife and two children. Visits his mistress, Lolly, every Friday night in the Street of Lights before he returns home to his family. Likes to fish and collect ancient artifacts. Has an alcohol addiction, known to be abusive. _Dickhead hides it well. _

Mission: Eliminate the target and retrieve the stolen ring. _Idiot's wearing it around his finger as well; he's just waiting to get mugged isn't he._ Too easy.

His target shook hands with the men surrounding his table on the other side of the tavern, most likely having just concluded a deal. _One that won't be going through. _Naurto thought, a smirk gracing his angular features. A waiter, who'd been balancing a steaming hot bowl of soup in her hands, blushed red when she saw his handsome face, tripped over nothing and went sprawling towards him in a flail of arms and legs. Naruto tore his gaze away from the target and managed to catch the girl around the waist before she ended up smashing her face on the hard stone floor, unfortunately, the soup she'd been holding ended up splashing him in the face. The _steaming_ _hot_ soup.

Naruto dropped the girl on the ground and grabbed at his burning face, "Arghh, Shit, that fucking hurt!" Tears stung the corner of his sapphire blue eyes.

The girl looked stricken, a bright red flush colouring her pale cheeks, "I'm so, _so_ sorry Sir!"

Naruto froze when he heard sniffing and cracked a sore eyelid open. The girl was crying and she had both hands covering her face while tears poured down her cheeks.

"H-hey," he reached towards the distraught girl, forgetting about the burn of his face for a moment and put his hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry about it, I'm fine, see." He dropped his other hand from his face to show her that he was perfectly fine. This only seemed to make the girl cry louder.

"What the hell is all this racket!" A loud voice boomed from somewhere making Naruto look up. _Oh god, someone save me._ A _huge _ass man was storming towards them, his legs looked about the size of an elephant's leg and his arms were the size of a grown man's thigh, a greasy black beard hid half his face while beady little brown eyes glared at him through filthy strands of black hair in dire need of a thorough washing. In fact, the man's whole body needed a good scrubbing, Naruto thought when the stink of sweat, grease and rotten food hit him hard. The whale of a man stopped right in front of the pair, "Amy, clean this mess up now, you piece of shit. If you'd been born as fine as your whore of a mother than you would've been useful at least but you're as ugly as any poor beggar on the street." He struck her on the cheek and spat on the ground as she went sprawling across the floor.

Naruto felt a white hot rage engulf his body when the sounds of laughter reverberated around the tavern.

"Hey, I'll buy her for the night Tony; I need to breed more pigs!"

"Haha, maybe she can lick the shit off my boots after she's done!"

The girl, Amy, curled into a ball and shook, tears of shame and humiliation cascaded down her cheeks, the left side was already an ugly dark shade of purple.

Naruto had had enough. _Fuck this._ He leapt up off the ground, quick and agile as a fox and smashed his fist into the man's pudgy nose. Satisfaction coursed through his veins like a drug when he heard a loud crack. The man fell back with a cry, he reached up to feel the damage done to his nose and brought his hand away to discover that it was stained red with fresh blood.

"You little shit!"

The man lunged towards him, pudgy fingers outstretched to wring his neck. He was embarrassingly slow to Naruto's eyes. Naruto ducked under the man's fat hands and lunched one hard, powerful kick to the man's groin. The man tumbled to the ground with an almost inhuman shriek, clutching his family jewels and rolling around the floor. After making sure he wouldn't be getting up anytime soon Naruto walked over to the girl trembling in the corner. Customers darted out of his way in fear and some even sprinted out the door, no doubt to inform the royal guards that a brawl had occurred. _Better get out, quick_.

He made a quick scan of the area and swore when his target was nowhere in sight. Itachi wouldn't be happy with this…unlucky turn of events. Naruto crouched on his knees and petted the girl on the head. She flinched and peaked up at him from long black lashes, a look at him, then at the groaning figure of her father still on the ground, then back at him. "Hey, sorry about the mess." He said while reaching into the pocket of his thin black linen pants, he withdrew an ordinary brown pouch. Making sure no one could see what he was doing; he slipped the pouch into the stunned girls hands. Judging by the weight of it, it was probably more than enough to feed a family of five for a month.

"W-what?" She tried to hand it back to him but he pushed it back into her shaking hands.

"It's my apology, keep it please?" He flashed her a gentle smile to show her he meant no harm, this resulted in the girl shying away from him, pink blush coating her cheeks. Naruto leaned in close to the girl's ear, unaware of the charm she saw in him, "There's enough in there for you and your mother to get away from here, use it."

Amy stared at this stranger who had just given her such a ridiculous amount of money for absolutely nothing in return. He was about to stand up but she lunged out and managed to grab his arm, crystal blue eyes looked at her, kind and warm. "T-thank you so much, but I have nothing to give you in return…"

Naruto laughed, making her smile, "I don't need anything, just promise me you'll be careful."

She found herself nodding to the beautiful stranger, "I will."

"Good."

She watched the blond haired angel walk past gaping customers and out the door. The bag of gold coins, enough to buy her mother and her passage out of this hellhole clutched securely in her long grey tunic. She felt hope bubble within her heart for the first time in what felt like a millennium. Maybe she would get to cross paths with the angel sometime in the not too distant future. She needed to repay him for his kindness after all.

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><p>Naruto sprinted down a dim alley way, cursing to himself for being such an idiot. The heavy clattering of boots on stone resounded not too far behind him, along with the shouting of the royal guards. The bone chilling cold of the wind helped soothe the sting on his face. He had to get Karin to look at it for him when he got back. <em>Ugh Karin.<em>

"Stop there by the order of the king!"

_Like hell I will._ Naruto continued running, he'd managed to pull up the hood of his coat when he'd left the tavern before the guards had started chasing him. "Shit," Naruto swore when he turned a corner and almost collided with a huge stone wall, almost braining himself in the process. "Fuck, fuck, fuck." He scanned the area and grinned like a cat with a full bowl of milk when he saw a flash of red on top of one of the buildings.

"Halt!"

The guards had arrived. Naruto had his back facing them, head down and hood covering his face.

"Turn around now!"

Naruto ignored them. _Hurry up, you lousy bastard._

"That is an order, turn around now!" The captain motioned for his men to draw their swords. Just as he was about to give the order to strike, a miniature black ball bounced down from the sky. The guards flinched in surprise.

A second later coal black smoke enveloped everyone in the alley. Men coughed and spluttered as they inhaled the heavy black fumes, some slashed about, cutting and injuring their comrades.

"Stop!"

The smoke cleared and the captain of the royal guards swore in frustration.

Where their prey had stood, trapped not a moment ago there was now nothing there, not a single trace of the stranger anywhere. Neji swore again, something her rarely ever did. The slight crease of his forehead was the only indication that he was upset. How many times had this elusive stranger escaped his grasp. The one with the exotic blue eyes, that reminded him so much of an ocean raging in the storm, bound and controlled by no one. Neji had made it his goal to capture the stranger and keep him locked up forever, only to be controlled by him and him alone.

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><p>"Haha, thanks a lot Gaara, I owe you one pal. Did you see the look on Neji's face when I disappeared? Awe man that was funny!"<p>

The red head scowled at Naruto as they gracefully leapt from building to window to ledge to balcony, making sure no one caught even a glimpse of them, two assassins gliding through the dark shadows of the night.

"That was very foolish of you Naruto, you could have been caught." Gaara berated him, although the tiniest hint of a smile was starting to appear.

"Man, you know Neji can't catch me, I'm too damn fast for him."

Gaara chose not to answer, knowing it'd probably fuel Naruto's ego even more. He pondered over Naruto's actions in the tavern. "Naruto..." He stopped.

Naruto almost slipped off the roof of a house, "Dammit Gaara, a heads up would've been nice. You want my brains splattered all over the concrete?" Naruto scowled at the red head as he made his way over to him standing in the shadows of a giant church bell.

"Naruto, why did you give that girl the money?" Blue eyes widened. A tan hand reached out to scratch the messy mop of blond hair that was Naruto's. Gaara leaned in towards him so that their foreheads were touching. Cold hands brushed up Naruto's arms making him shudder; they brushed along his cheeks, tracing each scar, six in total and three on each cheek. Gaara pulled up the hood of Naruto's coat and blew cold air in his face. Naruto shook his head with a huff and he crossed his arms and pouted. _Cute_, Gaara thought.

"No reason." Was the curt reply, "Maybe I just wanted to." Naruto didn't want to answer, to tell him the truth. Gaara was a close and trusted friend of his, they'd been through hell together but Gaara was still clueless of Naruto's past. Something Naruto wanted to remain that way.

Gaara heaved a sigh, letting the subject drop for now. Naruto couldn't evade the past forever, he'd tell him when he was ready. "Let's go, Itachi was looking for you."

Naruto twitched, "He was looking for me…and you wait until _now_ to tell me!" He grabbed a fistful of wild blonde hair, almost wrenching it from the roots, "He's going to rip my balls off Gaara. I messed up that mission too!"

Gaara was unfazed by the bout of spastic panic Naruto was experiencing, the blonde never failed to amuse him, "Don't worry I cleaned it up. Target was eliminated and I got the ring."

"You did!" Naruto felt like world peace had been achieved, like rainbows and sparkles were shooting out of his ass. Wait…that was just a tad bit disturbing to envision. Never mind. "Gaara, I love you man. What do you want? I'll get you anything-"

"The ring."

Confusion. "What?"

"I was joking, itachi's going to skin you alive." This was Gaara's cue to start walking away.

"…Gaara."

Sophisticated powerwalk.

"GAARA YOU SONOFABITCHMOTHERFUCKER HE'S GONNA KILL ME!"

Sprint. Sprint far away. Gaara wondered if he should inform Naruto that shrieking in the middle of the night wasn't the smartest of ideas and was no way for an assassin to act but then again he really shouldn't be sprinting like a madman through the brightly lit streets of Konoha. He felt a trickle of fear for when Itachi would catch wind of the news and he would, he was Uchiha Itachi, the master of the most dangerous band of assassins in Konoha after all, there was nothing that could escape those frightening amber eyes.

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><p>"Reports of an insane blond maniac bumbling through the streets of Konoha, screaming obscenities and brandishing a makeshift weapon…"<p>

Naruto flinched when the blood red eyes of Uchiha Itachi locked onto him. After he'd got Karin to fix up his burn he'd left for Itachi's room. Presently, they were in the private chamber of Itachi's room in the richer area of Konoha. Itachi's sense of style or colour he should say was rather…dull. His room consisted of a crap load of black and more black, there were no personal portraits, no interesting statues, just one large polished mahogany bed with black silk sheets, a chest which he'd never seen open, a huge red rug which spanned the entire room and a desk and chair which Itachi was presently reclining in and damn did he look intimidating, staring at him like that.

"Naruto, what sorry excuse have you conjured up now?"

_Think dammit. Think!_ The words flew out of his mouth before he could stop them. "Some pervert tried to grab my ass while I was watching the target. I told him to piss the hell off but he tried his luck on my sacred balls instead so I kicked him in the groin. An innocent girl was mentally traumatised by the whole 'incident' so I gave her some money to help her…" And this was where his brained died out. "Get over the…thing…um yea, that's the whole story."

Itachi's fist clenched and unclenched itself under the desk. _Breathe._ "That does not explain why you were stampeding around like a mad bull."

_Ahh crap_, Naruto thought, "Um, well…I." He fidgeted on the balls of his feet, tugging at the hem of his coat.

"Naruto come here."

_He's going to kill me now and feed me to his rabid dogs. _Naruto made his way over to the master, head bowed to the ground, desperately trying to come up with a valid excuse that Itachi would actually believe. Each step he took pounded louder and louder in his head. He could hear the thumping beat of his heart, feel it slamming against his chest, for a split second he thought it would actually shatter past his ribcage, past skin, muscle and bone to plop on the floor to be examined and probed by Itachi. He looked up when Itachi wrapped cold, pale fingers around his wrists.

"Naruto." The master spoke, "Sit."

He sat down in the gap between Itachi's legs so that Itachi's crotch was pressed against his hip and his legs were spread around him, caging him in. Naruto was stiff and nervous. His eyes widened in surprise when Itachi pulled him closer so that his head was pressed against Itachi's chest, he could hear the rhythmic beating of Itachi's heart, and the steady pounding calmed his nerves.

Itachi wrapped his arms around the smaller, delicate form of his best assassin and nuzzled his head into the soft locks of Naruto's wild blonde hair, inhaling the scent that was purely Naruto; wind, sky and earth, everything free and untamed, beautiful. "I know why you did it Naruto, do not lie to me."

Naruto pushed himself closer to the warmth, his arms were coiled around Itachi's back and his head buried against the man's chest. "Sorry," he mumbled. His voice cracked with the next words, "Please don't throw me away."

Naruto liked to believe he was fearless, brave, loyal and strong but what he feared more than anything was loneliness, to be abandoned and tossed out like a useless ragdoll terrified him. He couldn't bear the thought of Itachi throwing him away when his use expired. That's why Naruto had strived so hard to be the best, to be needed by someone. This botch up only gave Itachi another incentive to throw him away and find someone better.

"Fool." He heard a gentle voice murmur in his ear; a warm hand rubbed his back. He was so sleepy, so exhausted, "I would never abandon you, erase that disgusting thought from your mind this instant." A smile tugged at the cornera of his lips. Deep blue eyes drifted closed, oblivion.

Itachi watched as Naruto drifted off in slumber. When he was positive Naruto would not wake if roused, he picked his assassin up bridal style and carried him over to his bed. He tucked Naruto into the covers and allowed his mask to slip away for just a moment. A smile bloomed on his features, small but visible. He brushed back the hair from Naruto's forehead and planted a soft kiss in its place.

"Rest well Naruto."

"What are doing?" A voice so similar to his own echoed throughout the chamber. Itachi turned around, mask back in place.

A lean boy stood in the doorway. Coal black hair framed an angular face and spiked up at the back, tinges of midnight blue could be seen when the flames of the torches placed at regular intervals around Itachi's room hit his head. Equally dark eyes gazed back at Itachi. They were haughty, bored and arrogant. The younger Uchiha started towards the pair on the bed.

"What would father think? Catching you about to have sex with another _man_. You should be ashamed dear brother of mine, how disgusting you are to lay your hands on a-"

"Hold your tongue Sasuke before I slice it off for you." Itachi had turned back around to watch the sleeping blonde. _What if he wakes…_

Sasuke's eyes widened, appalled. "How dare you threaten me like that. I should have you thrown in the stocks and whipped for your arrogance!"

Itachi sighed, "What have you come here for Sasuke, surely you gloat enough at dinner."

The younger Uchiha glared at his despicable older, _half_-brother. Thank god for that respite at least. He cleared his throat and paused, gathering his erratic thoughts. "Father has…decided without my approval I should say, that you will now be…_instructing_ me in the arts of combat."

If Itachi wasn't so skilled in masking his emotions, his jaw would've dropped open in stunned disbelief. Be that as it may he was the master at disguising unwanted emotions and the only thing that gave him away about his displeasure at this…unfortunate turn of events was a tiny almost invisible twitch of his eyebrow. "I see," was all he said.

Sasuke stood in the middle of the chamber, hands on his hips, foot tapping impatiently and face set into a scowl. "I am not happy with this either brother. For some strange reason which I cannot fathom, father believes you are more capable at combat than my previous instructor, I highly doubt it no matter how pathetic he was."

_Relax Itachi. No matter how much he grates on your nerves he is still your brother. Do not throw your poisoned dagger at him._ Naruto shifted in his sleep, mumbling something about ramen world and heaven. Itachi watched him, struck with a sudden and powerful dose of inspiration. _Forgive me Naruto._ "Little brother-"

"Do not call me that."

Itachi almost rolled his eyes at his hypocritical idiot of a brother. "Sasuke," he amended for the Brat Prince. "If you are so disinclined for me to teach you then Naruto will." He gestured to the still slumbering figure of Naruto, who looked far too comfortable half buried in the mound of pillows and blankets.

Sasuke quirked an eyebrow and stared at the figure in the bed. All he could make out was a crazy mop of wild blond hair. "He looks like he would flee from a fight rather than contribute in one." _Although he seems to contribute plenty for Itachi in bed, _his mind supplied, remembering his brother's hint of affection from earlier. Sasuke arrived at the ingenious conclusion that the blond was Itachi's secret _male_ concubine. Who knew his brother preferred cock or, it seemed, he gave the covered figure a once over, ass.

"Naruto is more than adequate enough to instruct you." Itachi got up off the bed and made his way over to his neat desk, he sat down. "If you will excuse me Sasuke, I have things that I must attend to now. Your first lesson will begin tomorrow, one hour after breakfast in the courtyard." Itachi's tone left no room for argument.

Sasuke ploughed on anyway, used to getting his way, "I will not accept this. I will not be taught by your filthy concubine."

Few could ever piss Itachi off, Naruto happened to be one of them and Sasuke was another. "Uchiha Sasuke-"

"Woah, what's happening!" Naruto sat up, confused and just a tiny bit fearful with the static atmosphere wafting around the room, it was almost enough to suffocate him. His hair was spiked up in every angle possible and his clothes were dishevelled, his coat and plain shirt hung off one shoulder, leaving the tan skin bare to the elements. Itachi found that he quite liked this look on the blond and he was beginning to experience the tinges of an oncoming erection, he dragged his chair closer to the desk, thanking whatever deity in the sky had made him sit here instead of remaining on the bed. Sasuke on the other hand only strengthened his belief that the blond was a filthy concubine. _Look at him trying to seduce me, has he no pride._ He snorted. _Of course not, he's a concubine after all._

Beads of sweat started to form in Naruto's palms. _The hell do they keep staring at me for?_

Itachi broke the silence with a little cough causing Sasuke to turn his head to face him. "Well Sasuke, tomorrow, one hour after breakfast."

"…Fine, but just so you know you should find another concubine, this one," he pointed to a still confused Naruto on the bed, "Will not be able to service you for a month after I am finished with him." And with that said, Sasuke stormed out of the chamber in a flurry of black, silver and blue.

Silence.

"Um…," Naruto began, not quite sure of what to say next, "Did he just call me a concubine?"

"…Naruto."

"Y-yea?" Itachi's tone of voice made him terribly wary.

"Do not believe that I am punishing you, I am not."

"O-okay, sure."

"As of today you are now Sasuke's…tutor in the art of combat."

"Wait, what?"

"You will begin tomorrow after breakfast. Test him out first, feel for his skill level and then incorporate the sword-"

"Um, Itachi…"

"Bow, daggers, spears."

Naruto leapt off the bed and started toward him, "Itachi!"

The older Uchiha looked at him and Naruto froze on the spot, "Yes, Naruto?" That voice was sickly sweet, daring him to object, deny or argue. No negotiations, his eyes told him, final decision. Naruto knew winning was impossible against him.

"I'll be there Itachi…"

The Uchiha smiled at him. _Oh god that's frightening_, Naruto thought as a shiver ran down his spine.

"Good, one hour after breakfast in the courtyard, do not be late. You may leave now Naruto."

Naruto bolted to the door, desperate to get out; just when he'd gotten the door open Itachi's voice rang out, stopping him in his tracks, "And Naruto."

"Y-yes."

"Complete the mission tomorrow night, no excuses."

"Yes Master."

Itachi wouldn't admit that that one word uttered by _his_ Naruto almost had him releasing his load in his pants. For some reason he felt a sense of foreboding as he watched Naruto close the door. He shook it off as agitated nerves and annoyance directed towards his father and his damn offspring. If only Itachi had paid more attention. He was completely unaware that he'd just set off a chain of events which he would've been desperate to stop had he known where it would eventually lead.

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><p>Phew, took me almost the whole day.<p>

Review please? -insert ugly puppy dog face-


	2. Chapter 2

**Warnings: **Swearing

An update!? What. I actually really love writing this story, not sure why but I love it. Maybe it's cause I love writing about bratty, pompous Sasuke, it's just so much fun.  
>I'm not abandoning anything I swear. Anyway enough talk! On with the story<p>

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><p>"Garaa, save me!" Naruto whined.<p>

The blond and red haired assassins were lounging about in one of the Uchiha's stables where they kept their most prized stallions. Bright rays of sunlight pierced through the cracks of the closed shutters, spaced at regular intervals around the stable. A constant and painful reminder for the blond that time was slowly running out before he had to deal with the Brat Prince and his oversized ego.

They're probably having breakfast right at this moment_, _Naruto thought with a growing sense of dread. The pathetic blond assassin was sprawled out amongst the bales of hay; there was hay in his hair, his clothes and probably his boots too, although he honestly couldn't care less right now. There were bigger problems then having to deal with an itchy ass later on…well…maybe not. He stood up and shook himself in an attempt to dislodge the hay stuffed in his clothes, almost falling back into the bale. He huffed, gave up and sat back down.

Gaara rolled his eyes at the comical sight Naruto made, he had opted for a seat on a wooden stool in a corner of the stable and was currently sharpening one of his silver daggers. The constant screech of metal on metal was a comfort to his ears and it was far better than having to listen to Naruto whine about the Uchiha's little brother.

"You think I could…" The blond began, running a tanned hand through his dishevelled mess of a hair. Bits of hay fell out.

"What?" Garaa quirked a non-existent eyebrow.

"Ahhh, I don't know!" Naruto wanted to yank his hair out in frustration. He wanted to drown himself in hay and hope Itachi would forget about everything. Fat chance of that happening, the bastard practically had photographic memory. Naruto could already picture him waltzing in here, eyes showing bloody murder as he dragged him off to the gates of hell to go 'play' with Lucifer himself.

A gorgeous chestnut colored stallion neighed, shaking its sleek mane from side to side, the horse gleamed a blazing red where the sun reflected off its coat. Naruto leaped off the bale and wandered over to the stallion opposite of where Garaa was seated. "Shhh, Kyuubi." He rubbed the horse's neck and the creature stilled for the span of a second before it nuzzled Naruto's hand. Naruto grinned.

"Wait, boy." He sprinted over to a patched canvas bag, hung up by a metal hook on the wall and withdrew a fresh and perfectly red apple. He offered it to his favourite mount and the horse neighed in delight before devouring the apple right from Naruto's fingers.

Garaa chuckled as he watched Naruto pet the horse. "You'll make him fat." He said which earned him a sharp glare from the blond and a snort from Kyuubi.

"He's perfectly fine, aren't you boy." Naruto cooed at the horse. Kyuubi snorted again and Naruto swore the horse had rolled its eyes. He huffed and stomped back over to his pile of hay.

Gaara rolled his eyes, this idiot could be such a child sometimes_. "_Naruto, just do it. I'm sure training Uchiha The Second isn't going to kill you."

Naruto turned to face Garaa, a look of utter disbelief plastered on his face. "Garaa, you do not understand. Itachi's brother is like Satan incarnate but a hundred times worse. No, he's a thousand times worse actually."

The red head scoffed. "Stop exaggerating, he can't be that bad and how would you know, you've never met the guy properly."

"I hear enough stories from Itachi and the servants and he is Satan's spawn I tell you."

"They're just stories, rumours."

"Sounds pretty accurate to me."

"You're being unreasonable."

"He called me Itachi's concubine."

Garaa paused. "Did he really?"

"YES!" Naruto was pacing from one end of the stable to the other now kicking up hay in the process; the stable boys won't be pleased. "Do I look like a concubine to you?" He held his arms out, blue eyes wide.

Gaara resumed sharpening his blade, "…no, of course not."

"YOU PAUSED YOU BASTARD!" Naruto pointed an accusing finger in Garaa's direction.

"I did not, you're delusional." Garaa stood up and made his way towards the exit, ignoring Naruto who was practically foaming at the mouth. When he arrived at the door he turned to face the raging baboon that had been his partner and best friend for all his life. "By the way…" Naruto stopped flailing about to look up at him. "You're late."

"You're evil."

"I know."

* * *

><p>Sasuke scowled at the troops sparring it out in the middle of the training grounds. He's late. First day and he's late already<em>. <em>"Great first impression this is turning out to be," he murmured. Sasuke pondered on whether he should just up and leave but before he could decide, a hideous blond blur came sprinting towards him and would've crashed into him too if he hadn't sidestepped the monstrosity that was his 'trainer.' He scoffed. What was Itachi thinking.

Naruto tumbled headfirst into the tree Sasuke had previously been lounging against.  
>"Owww, shit that hurts." He rubbed his throbbing skull while the Uchiha stared on, completely impassive, uncaring and just a tad embarrassed he had to be standing next to this buffoon.<p>

"If you're done playing the fool I'd like to begin now before winter arrives."

Naruto looked up, forehead creased and eyebrows scrunched together in a scowl. Selfish brat_._ He got up off the ground and turned around so he could take in the younger Uchiha and what he deduced was that mini Uchiha looked…plain. He couldn't see the handsome and sweet heir all the females drooled over but he now understood why Itachi had told him that he wasn't being punished in any way, because it sure as hell felt like he was being punished. He brushed dirt off his plain, cream coloured tunic and extended his hand out in greeting, clearing his throat as he spoke, "Um…uhh, my names Naruto, I'll be your teacher from now on."

The Uchiha looked at him, impassive. "Do I really need to introduce myself to you? We've wasted enough time as it is, let's go." He turned around and left Naruto standing there like an idiot with his hand still outstretched and walked to the middle of the training grounds. Many of the soldiers bowed to him and strode clear of the area, some retreated inside to break fast or bathe while others remained outside, curious. They formed groups around the arena, sitting on fences, stools or on the ground.

Naruto coughed, feeling awkward with all the attention on him. He made his way to Sasuke and addressed the Uchiha, far too self-conscious of all the eyes on them, judging, waiting, watching. Being the centre of attention was probably not the most comfortable situation for an assassin, too used to blending in to the night to be in but, Itachi's orders. Damnit Itachi, this is taking years off my life. Might as well get started.

"So let's start out with a sword first, I'll test how much you know and then we'll move on in whatever direction after that."

He caught the Uchiha smirking as he turned away from him. "You got a problem with that?" God the pissed him off.

Sasuke turned to face Naruto and cocked his head to the side, smirk still in place. "None whatsoever, although I should warn you I don't intend to go easy on you."

A soldier came and presented a polished, bronze broadsword to Sasuke. He picked it up, happy with the weight and took his place a few paces away from Naruto, ready, waiting and most obviously bored.

We'll see how good you really are, brat_. _Another soldier tossed him an identical sword. Naruto caught it in his right hand with ease. He never did like broadswords, they were too heavy and useless in narrow alleyways and they were also damn annoying to run through the streets with. He'd have much preferred a pair of short daggers like Gaara's or even a rapier, less weight meant more speed. He took two steps back and stood there, ready.

The soldiers all watched eager for the beating Sasuke would dish out. The younger prince was ruthless even in sparring matches. That skinny little blond's got no chance, most of them thought. He'll be up and packing after the prince was done with him.

Sasuke acted, quick as a cat, he dashed towards Naruto and swung the sword, intent on knocking the blond out with one swing. Too easy.

Too many openings_._ Naruto easily parried with his sword. God I hate this sword. Sasuke jumped back in surprise and took his stance. Not bored now are you, Naruto thought.

The soldiers grinned in rising excitement. Seems like this wouldn't be such a one-sided match after all.

Sasuke, cautious now, circled the blond with his sword poised to parry or lunge should the opportunity arise.

The kid learns pretty fast. Naruto watched Sasuke, drew in a quick breath and lunged. Bronze on bronze scrapped against each other as he parried, feinted and lunged at Sasuke. The blazing sun made the swords shimmer like fire. The Uchiha was sweating now.

Sasuke leapt back after another onslaught from Naruto and almost dropped to his knees from sheer exhaustion, he gasped for breath and cursed the bright summer heat. His legs felt like lead, sweat drenched his body and the sword seemed to weigh a ton.I'm not going to lose, I won't. Who does this idiot think he is? Another part of his mind wondered how the blond was so wouldn't believe Naruto wasn't exhausted too.

Naruto on the other hand was faring much better than Sasuke. He was barely tired. This spar was serving as more of a warm up to him than anything. The Uchiha was strong and fast he'd give him that but he was too impatient, left too many openings for Naruto to exploit. He was like a child swinging that sword around. He watched the Uchiha struggle for breath. He could see the sword trembling in his hands, the slight bend of his knees and the look in his eyes. It was a gaze Naruto knew all too well, had seen in so many men, men he had killed. It was a look of desperation. The uchiha was done.

Sasuke darted forwards. Idiot, Naruto thought. Never lunge at someone so far away and without the element of surprise, it's a death sentence.

Sasuke gripped the sword in both hands and swung it towards Naruto's left, victory clear in his eyes.

Naruto twisted clear away from the blade, his moves had been smooth and effortless like water. Sasuke stumbled to the ground, sword clattered away. He was breathing hard, eyes wide; there was dirt all over him. Naruto tapped his blade against the Uchiha's shoulder once, twice. "You lose Uchiha."

Sasuke's eyes were impossibly wide, he couldn't believe it. This stupid idiot. Itachi's dumb, pathetic concubine had just bested him in a duel, this wasn't happening. This was _not_ happening. He raised his head to look up into the blond's impossibly clear, blue eyes. Who are you really, he thought. Sasuke wanted to know, had to know and he would find out.

Naruto shoved the blade into the dirt and extended his hand out. "Nice to meet you I'm your new instructor, names Naruto, yours?"

Sasuke looked at the outstretched hand like it was manure on the soles of his boots. He slapped it away and dragged himself up off the ground. A servant scampered to his side and offered a damp towel and a globet of water. Sasuke ignored the servant and turned around so his back was facing Naruto.

"Uchiha Sasuke. Next time, don't be late."

He took off without a backwards glance. The servant directed a venomous glare towards Naruto before tailing behind the Uchiha.

Naruto snorted, before muttering, "Even his servants are assholes."

He picked up the Uchiha's discarded sword, along with his own and made his way to the soldier's barracks.

Soldiers stepped out of his way, stunned speechless by how easily he'd defeated their master. A soldier turned to his companion, awestruck, "Where the hell'd he come from?"

"No bloody idea."

Itachi had seen the whole spectacle play out from his window. He chuckled, clearly amused. Someone had had to slap Sasuke awake sooner or later and what better person then his dear Naruto. His little brother wouldn't survive in this happy illusion of always being the best, there would always be someone better and his brother just had to accept that fact. He sighed and rubbed two fingers against his temple. Unfortunately for him, Sasuke wasn't that easy to convince and he wouldn't let this insult slide. Itachi felt sympathy for Naruto. Sasuke would not be kind to him in the following days to come. He'd make it up to his assassin later.

* * *

><p>Naruto slid the blades into one of the many racks lining the walls of the soldier's barracks; he ran a hand along the hilt. Still hate them. He turned to leave and was faced with one of the ugliest human beings his eyes had ever had the misfortune to see. The soldier was huge with insanely broad shoulders, greasy black hair that hung in lanky strings all over his head and sweat. Everywhere. Would it kill the guy to bathe? Smells worse than the pig stys.<p>

"Where'd ya learn ta fight, brat?" Lovely, missing teeth as well. Naruto heaved a tired sigh, he hated dealing with idiots.

"My dad. Now if you'll excuse me I have somewhere I need to be." Naruto tried to side step Sir Ugly and his band of men but the soldier grabbed his arm. Naruto's first thought was I need a bath, followed by, doesn't matter I'll burn just my arm off.

"Where ya think ya going, brat?" The man's breath was putrid and now Naruto would need to burn his retinas too, in fact that should've been his first idea. He was losing his touch.

"How about you kindly let go of my arm and we all walk out as friends." Don't do anything stupid, Naruto. Think of how pissed Itachi would be, you do not want to piss that guy off.

Sir Ugly laughed a booming, gruff laugh. "Don't think so brat, aye, why don'tcha try your hand against me or…" He pulled the blond up against his hairy chest and leaned in towards Naruto's ear. Note, burn that too. "How bout I get that pretty little mouth of yours to suck me and me boy's hard cocks aye." Naruto felt a large, callused hand squeeze his ass, followed by a chorus of laughter and shouts of agreement. Think of Itachi. Think of Itachi….Fuck Itachi.

Naruto wrenched the man's disgusting hand away from his ass and squeezed. The man howled in pain and used his free hand to make a grab at Naruto's neck. The assassin was too fast. Naruto let go of the arm and dodged left out of range of the man's outstretched hands. He grabbed a blade from the rack behind him. Longsword. I'm just full of luck today aren't I. He stayed where he was, waiting.

Sir Ugly's band of men seemed hesitant, very aware of the beating the blond had given to their prince just then. Fear won because they turned tail and ran out, other soldiers that had been standing around, curious, also started for the grounds outside, not wanting to be on the end of the Uchiha family's bad side. All that was left was Naruto and the ugly soldier standing across from him.

"You little shit, after I'm done with ya, I'll fuck ya dead body right in front of the Uchiha's."

Naruto rolled his eyes, he'd had far uglier threats.

The man lunged straight for him. Seriously? What was up with this army and head on assaults. Naruto sidestepped the charging bull of a man and aimed a swift and hard kick to the man's groin. The bastard had it coming.

The man fell to the grounding moaning in agony, hand clutched over his burning dick.

"Next tim-"

"Uzumaki Naruto, Master Itachi would like to see you up in his chambers." Naruto turned to see a servant standing at the entrance.

"Can it wait, I'm kind of busy at the moment." Busy ripping this guy's balls out and shoving them up his ass.

"Master Itachi requests that you go now."

Naruto sighed. It wasn't even dusk yet and he was already having to deal with too much. "Fine, tell him I'm coming up now." He looked down at the soldier still groaning in pain. "I'll deal with you later," he smiled at the man who looked like he'd just shit his pants. "Don't miss me to much when I'm gone okay."

* * *

><p>"Naruto." Itachi needed a break, preferably on a deserted island where no one could find him, with Naruto obviously. "Did you have to potentially disfigure one of my soldiers like that?"<p>

"He groped my ass!" Now that was something Itachi hadn't heard. He'd deal with the soldier later, maybe have the guy castrated.

"You know you should've just walked away. You can't let it be known that you are what you are." Naruto huffed from his spot on Itachi's bed. Itachi couldn't help but adore the sight, how he craved to just take the blond here and now. He had a feeling Naruto would be loud and relished at the thought of wrenching sweet screams of "more" and "harder" from the assassin. Itachi turned to face the window, uncomfortable now.

Naruto didn't seem to have noticed; instead he was glaring at the floor, arms and legs crossed. "I know, I was careful!"

Itachi sighed, "You must be even more so, now. Which is why I have taken the liberty to prepare you and Sasuke a private room where you can continue your lessons away from the army. We can reduce the chances of your little 'incident' from happening again."

"Your brothers a dick." The Uchiha rolled his eyes.

"Give him a chance Naruto, he is merely spoilt and arrogant." He smiled now, "I thought you enjoyed taking on people like that." No reply. "Naruto?" Itachi turned to face the bed and caught the blond, eyes closed and fast asleep. He smiled and ran a hand along the boy's cheek. Naruto and Gaara were always tired during the day what with having to run around the city at ungodly hours of the night. More often than not he caught one or the other, mostly Naruto, sleeping away in some part of the castle. It had made for some memorable moments, especially when he had found the red head curled up in a ball asleep, high up in one of the towers. He'd never seen Gaara sleep.

He ran his hands through the blond's hair and pressed his lips to Naruto's forehead. "Sleep well Naruto. I have a task for you tonight." He wanted nothing more than to curl up next to Naruto and sleep but he had things to do and an annoying brother to talk to so with one last look at Naruto, so peaceful in his sleep the Uchiha stepped out into the corridor and closed the door behind him.

* * *

><p>"Alright, so this should be the place." Naruto murmured to himself. He landed as silent as a flea on an old depilated building. Wooden planks were nailed over every window and the some parts of the building looked like it would collapse at any moment. I swear I'll fall into one of these holes one day. He scaled the side of the building until he came to a boarded up window. He looked around to make sure he was completely alone then he tapped out an intricate pattern and soon a little hole opened up under the window. Naruto shimmied through and came up on the other side. Two huge men stood in front of him. He knew the drill. He removed every hidden blade, every weapon, anything dangerous in other words and put them on the table. One man patted him down, nodded the okay and he was off.<p>

The intricate network of tunnels under the old building had always left Naruto disoriented and he loathed being underground, it made him feel trapped, plus with no weapons on his person he felt utterly naked. Sure he'd be able to fight off anyone that would try to hurt him but his blades had always been a soothing comfort to him and he treasured each one. Without them he got fidgety and nervous and he hated it.

Naruto navigated his way through the tunnels. He felt sorry for any poor sucker that happened to find his way down here. He could also never understand why they would need a pair of guards when a person could just as easily get lost and starve down here. It had taken him a good year to even figure his way through a mere quarter of this network which was why he respected Jiraiya so much for knowing the system perfectly. Also, the guy was pretty funny too.

Naruto arrived at his destination and slid into a dark hole cleverly concealed behind a large stone boulder. A couple of steps and he came to a wooden door, he knocked. The door opened at once to reveal a slightly dishevelled, slightly drunk Jiraiya.

"Naruto, my boy!" The silver haired man slapped Naruto across the back and he had to grab the door frame to stop himself from being slammed into the concrete. For an old man, he sure had one hell of slap. Hurt like a bitch too.

"I'm here for the scrolls Itachi requested, Jiraiya."

Jiraiya pouted. "Why not have a drink with me Naruto, you're always running off doing this and that for Itachi!"

"I'm worki-"

"Nonsense!" He grabbed Naruto around the neck and hulled him into the room.

Plush red carpet decorated the floors, pictures of huge breasted women adorned the walls and Jiraiya was pushing him down into one of the chairs in the room. The room was small but Naruto knew the door at the back lead off into a multitude of other rooms.

A goblet of wine was held in front of his face. Jiraiya grinned down at him. "One drink, kid. You look like you need it."

He shouldn't really be doing this. Get the scrolls. Get out. Report back and then…and then you got to deal with the Brat Prince tomorrow morning. Wine it is then. He took the goblet from Jiraiya's hands and downed it in one gulp. Not the best idea.

Jiraiya laughed at the coughing blond. "Still a kid aye. How you been Naruto? It's been a while since I seen you down here."

"I'm doing good, looking after Itachi's brother and all."

Jiraiya almost snorted up his glass of wine. "Hahaha, brat! You get stuck with the other brat?" He wiped at his face, tears in his eyes, still laughing. Bastard wasn't even trying to hide it.

"Yea, Itachi's orders."

Another laugh. "Another, boy?"

"Yes."

Naruto didn't know how long he'd stayed with Jiraiya and drank but as the wine warmed his system he stopped caring, stopped caring about the brat prince, Itachi, what he was, everything. Nothing mattered. It was just him and the warm euphoria coursing through his brain. Ever so slowly, his eyes shut closed. The goblet fell from his hands to rest in a pool of spilt wine.

Jiraiya watched Naruto sleep, his breathing even and gentle. He picked up the fallen wine and thanked every deity that his carpets were red, Tsunade wouldn't have been very happy to find wine on her carpets, at least it wasn't too noticeable. Jiraiya put the goblets on a low wooden table and pulled a blanket out from a wooden chest. He draped it over Naruto's still form and sat down next to the boy.

"Itachi, you're going to kill this boy."

Naruto was just a kid, albeit, bratty loud-mouthed and annoying as hell but he was still just a kid. He shouldn't be killing off crooks, thieves and other scum of society. He should do what kids do, whatever the hell that was Jiriya had no idea.

"You called Master?" Jiraiya didn't look up rfom Naruto's sleeping face.

"Yes, take those scrolls. "he pointed to three scrolls bound in orange string, "to Uchiha Itachi."

The man nodded, "yes, Master." He prepared to depart before Jiraiya stopped him.

"Wait." The man bowed.

"Tell Itachi that Naruto is with me, god knows how angry the guy gets if he doesn't have Naruto under lock, key and steel chains."

"I understand Master."

Jiraiya shooed the man away with a wave of his hand. "Go now, quickly."

He was getting far too old for this. Naruto, you better get out while you still can but even Jiraiya knew that Naruto had already woven himself in too deep.

"You and Gaara. You better stay safe."

* * *

><p>Naruto knew he shouldn't have drunk. He knew!<p>

"Are you ready?" Too fucking loud.

The brat prince was leaning against a pillar, sword in hand and Naruto could've sworn if he didn't have a massive hangover right now that the prince was smirking. Evilly. Bastard knew.

Itachi had already given him enough lectures this morning when he'd appeared in Itachi's room red eyed, tired and cringing at every loud noise. Itachi hadn't been pleased, or happy, not even a little bit. Well Naruto had kind of passed out when he was supposed to have been on a job but what could he say it was Jiraiya 's fault! The old man had kept pushing glass after glass onto Naruto and he just couldn't refuse. The Uchiha had gotten his scrolls so he shouldn't have been complaining. Still that didn't stop him from talking Naruto's ears off about disregarding orders blahblahblah. He just wanted to crawl back into a hole and die.

"I said are you ready?" Sasuke slapped the blade down onto the tiled floor. A sharp ring echoed throughout the large room making Naruto wince in pain. His poor, poor brain. Never again Jiraiya.

The blond haired assassin reached down and picked up the blade. He looked at Satan's spawn smirking down at him and predicted that this would not be enjoyable at all. Not one bit.

He was absolutely right.


End file.
